Battalion Wars, To Save Xylvania
by BobbertCanuck
Summary: Xylvania begins to crumble without it's Kaiser. What remains of the country's Navy launches a mission to save the Kaiser from the frozen wastes of the Tundran Territories. Will the Xylvanians succeed in their mission? Rated T for future content. Filed under Advance Wars because there is no Battalion wars category.
1. Part I: The Journey

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the rights to the Battalion Wars franchise.

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**Part I: The Journey  
**

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Deep below, in the waters near the frozen wastes of northern Tundra, a pack of Xylvanian submarines (known as a wolf pack) close in on their destination. In one, the leader of all that remained of the Xylvainian Navy stands, surrounded by his lieutenants. His name is Baron Von Krieg. His mission was near impossible, the chances of completing it were next to zero. Nevertheless, it had to be done. They had to save the Kaiser.

Maps were spread on the table in front of them, the letter X was marked on places they theorized the Kaiser may be buried. Even though the news of the Kaisers fate would have normally not be heard in Xylvania for a long time, soldiers who escaped Nova's wrath were able to tell those of the military who remained in the fatherland about the tragedy. Sadly no matter how well under wraps they were able to keep the news, the people eventually discovered the truth. This put Xylvania in a state of partial anarchy. What remained of the military imposed a state of martial law, in an attempt to keep the order. Baron Von Krieg, the last top brass in the Navy, proposed a radical plan to save the Kaiser. It was met with resistance and hesitation but in the face of total collapse, it was passed.

The Baron and the navigator checked their charts, they marked an ice sheet that they hope would be thick enough to hold the weight of a tank, but thin enough for the submarines to break through. Their plan was to surface through the ice, and send out search parties and patrols until they found the Kaiser. It wasn't the best plan, but it was the only one that could be done with the amount of manpower at their disposal.

"Baron..." An acid gas veteran started, "not that I have a lack of faith sir, but how do you know that Kaiser Vlad will still be alive when and if we find him?"

The room fell silent. The Baron eventually broke the silence.

"Well Karl, I believe that the Kaiser is strong enough to last a long time without food or water, but him being dead is a possibility. Nevertheless, we must still search for him."

Suddenly, a grunt ran in, looking in a state of panic.

"Sir, unidentified blips on the radar have appeared sir, they may be Tundran submarines!"

The submarine was smashed by a torpedo, rocking it. The baron was thrown against the table.

"Scratch that sir, they **are **Tundran submarines!"

"Everyone to their posts!"

The baron ran to the bridge and picked up the communicator.

"All Xylvainian subs, this is Baron Von Krieg of the TKS Attentäter, smash the Tundrans and then split up, There may be strength in numbers, but we must remain stealthy." he hung up the communicator, "Let's hope to god that those Tundran's haven't called for help yet."

The Xylvanian subs, split up and manoeuvred to try and flank the Tundrans, but they caught on, and manoeuvred in attempts to do the same. The Xylvainians were behind stormed with the torpedoes, communication between the captains eventually broke and the Xylvainian subs individually retreated and attempted to hide from the Tundran submarines.

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**Two Days Later**

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"Hello? This is the Baron aboard the TKS Attentäter, is anyone there?... nothing."

The Baron had been trying to get in contact with the rest of the wolf pack for the previous two days. He was unsure of the men's moral, but his was at an all time low.

"Baron," Karl started, "I believe it is time to continue the mission by ourselves. Every minute we spend searching for the wolf pack is a minute that the Kaiser spends in an icy prison. By all means, we must complete the mission, with or without the help of the wolf pack."

As much as the Baron wanted to deny this, he couldn't, every word Karl spoke was true. So much to his regret he gave the order to abandon the search for the wolf pack. The submarine continued it's journey towards the ice sheet they had marked on their map. They were finally at their destination.

"Brace yourself, in case the ice sheet Is too thick." the Baron warned.

Slowly, the submarine ascended to the surface. The tension mounted as they got closer to the ice. Everyone on the sub cheered as they triumphantly smashed through the ice sheet. The baron stood on the balcony of the submarine, looking at the horizon as the sun set. It was a long journey from Xylvainia to Tundra, but they had finally made it.

"Baron," Karl started, walking up next to Von Krieg, "What do we do now?"

"For now Karl we rest. Tomorrow however, we begin our search for the Kaiser.

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_Been sitting on this idea for a while, I hope you guys like it!_

_Reviews, ratings, and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated!_


	2. Part II: The Search Begins

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the rights to Battalion.

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**Part II: The Search Begins**

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_Personal Log # 2701: After countless days of hiding from the Tundrans and searching for the other submarines in the wolf pack, we've surfaced in what we believe is our designated area. Our compass isn't too accurate due to our high latitude. Being so far north is interfering with our capabilities of telling east from west. Our only definite knowledge of direction is north and south. To try to point in any other direction causes the needle to fluctuate in an unreadable manner. Nevertheless I must make due with the materials at hand to find the kaiser. We will begin the search in the morning._

_-Baron L. Von Krieg, Flottillenadmiral in the Xylvanian Navy.  
_

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The Baron stepped onto the conning tower's deck. Armed with his spyglass he searched around for any sights of red.

"No sight of any Tundran's... yet."

His Right hand man, Karl, stepped up beside him.

"Good morning Sir."

"Good morning Karl. Are the men ready?"

"Nervous bur eager sir. Or at least that's what they told me."

They both chuckle.

"That's good to hear."

"Any sight of Tundrans sir?"

"None what so ever."

"Very good, when shall the grunts and I depart sir?"

"Right after breakfast."

"We've already eaten sir"

"Then you may depart when you're ready."

"Right away then, sir."

Karl lest the Conning tower's balcony and made way to the make shift barrack.

"Good morning men!" Karl said as the rifle grunts stood and saluted.

"At ease. We will be leaving shortly so pack some provisions if you already haven't."

"We have already packed provisions sir!" responded the sergeant.

"Excellent then we leave immediately!"

"Sir, yes sir!"

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**Five and a Half Hours Later**

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Karl and his squad trudged through the snow, looking for large craters and crevasses. They all had been looking for signs of more or less anything other than rocks, trees, ice, and snow. The reflection of the sun's rays bouncing off the snow were beginning to hurt their eyes.

"Sir!" One of the grunts called. "I think I see something!"

"What is it?"

"Not sure sir but it's big and blue!"

This excited Karl

"You heard him men, move out!"

The squad moved swiftly through the snow towards the point of interest. As they got closer, they laid gaze upon the 'big blue' thing that was seen.

"I can't believe it." Karl started. "It's... It's a-"

"Battlestation." the sergeant finished.

Indeed, it was a Battlestation. It was half-frozen and buried in five seven feet of snow, but it looked in decent condition.

"You two," Karl pointed to two of the grunts, "secure the area." The saluted and left to do so.

Karl turned to the massive Iron beast of a machine. He marvelled at the fact that even in the brutal Tundran cold, a piece Xylvanian engineering persevered. He climbed the mound of snow and ice to the top of the Battlestation. Alas, the hatch was frozen shut. The sergeant followed him up the mound. He set his pack down and pulled a crowbar from the bag. A smile crept on Karl's face.

"Why do you have that?" he laughed.

"Why not have it?" the sergeant retorted.

He wedged the end of the bar under the hatch. He pushed the crowbar to try prying the hatch open. After a minute or so, Karl helped with the prying. Finally the hatch flung open. They stared into the opened hatch.

"You first." the sergeant squeaked."

Karl rolled his eyes. He climbed into the depths of the battlestation.

He had never seen the inside of a battlestation. He'd seen them from afar but he'd never been inside one. Immediately at the bottom of the ladder was the war room. Battlestations were mobile command centres. If orders weren't coming from HQ, chances were that they were coming from a battlestation.

He explored the drawers and cabinets for old files. He found some commands from the Mining Spider, provision records, crew records, and also, a commander's log...

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Oh my, I wonder what it says... You'll have to wait for part III to find out. Until then, read, review, and I hope you enjoyed this.


	3. Part III: Xavier

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the rights to Battalion Wars.

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**Part III: Xavier**

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Karl sat down in the officer's quarters in the battlestation and read the logs of it's former commander.

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_Personal Log # 1011: We've been in Tundra for three weeks now and the cold has already taken it's toll on the men. Three dead of frostbite, and seventeen injured. The wine rations have frozen somehow, and the constant wind and snow makes creating fire nearly impossible. Rollcall this morning saw that men were defecting, I do not know how long we will last._

_Xavier Von Krelsman, Commander of Ritter Battalion, Xylvanian Expeditionary Force._

_Personal Log # 1018: Ice station X has been established, it's defence is of paramount concern to Kommandant Ubel and the Kaiser. We've had nearly a thousand non combat casualties, and about seven hundred in combat casualties. The environment is killing faster than the Tundrans. Whatever is here better be worth the lives._

_Xavier Von Krelsman, Commander of Ritter Battalion, Xylvanian Expeditionary Force._

_Personal Log # 1030: The ice station was destroyed, we are to retreat to the mining spider and form a phalanx to block the Tundran advance. We left them though, to freeze. By direct order, we were told to leave anyone that couldn't stand behind. The bodies, the bodies of the dead, were also left, no time to bury them. What are we doing here. What is so important that we cannot lay the dead to rest._

_Xavier Von Krelsman, Commander of Ritter Battalion, Xylvanian Expeditionary Force._

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The logs grew more horrifying as they went on, then It came to the point where they stopped being numbered.

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_Personal Log # XXXX: The bodies are endless, so much death, was it worth it? When do we receive new orders? It's been too long since we had new orders._

_-Xavier Von Krelsman, Commander of Ritter Battalion, Xylvanian Expeditionary Force._

_Personal Log # XXXX: The men, where are the men? The men are gone, except the ones that are not._

_The bodies, the bodies, I must find the men amongst the bodies._

_-Xavier Von Krelsman, Commander of Ritter Battalion, Xylvanian Expeditionary Force._

_Personal Log # XXXX: The bodies, where are the bodies? Did the men take the bodies? What are they doing? I must find the bodies amongst the men._

_-Xavier Von Krelsman, Commander of Ritter Battalion._

_Personal Log # XXXX: The blood, it's warm. It keeps me warm. The men know this. The bodies had blood, they used the blood, the blood kept them warm. The blood kept me warm. The blood is love, the blood is life. I must have the blood._

_-Xavier Von Krelsman, Commander of Ritter Battalion._

_Personal Log # XXXX: The blood is now cold, The men know this. They search for more blood, and bodies. I must hide, or they'll find my body. How can I see my body?_

_-Xavier Von Krelsman._

_Personal Log # XXXX: Cold. Blood. Bodies. Fire. Blood. Fire. Blood. Blood. Blood. I love blood. The men know this. They're giving my my blood. I looked at my body, it's not my body, it's my body_

_-Xavier_

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The logs ended there. This man descended into madness. The fate of the Battlestation's crew were a bit foggy. But Karl assumed that with all the talk of blood and bodies, that the crew had circumb to cannibalism. Their journey had been hard on them, and they died without purpose. Karl hoped that the same fate would not befall him and the Baron.

"Sir!" the sergeant saluted.

"At ease."

"The area is secure. Sir."

Karl looked at the logs.

"Did you find any bodies?"

"No sir. Why?"

"Just curious."

The two left the battlestation. The dark of night was approaching. The seven feet of show that coated the iron behemoth was now down to five feet. Tents were pitched, and barrel fires had already been made. Rations were distributed and eaten, and all but the night guards went to their tents.

Karl lay awake, the words of Xavier's logs haunted him. The decent into madness was all too possible. He was plagued by thoughts of blood, and cannibalism. No. he had to endure, he was strong, his men were strong, he would find the crevice and report back to the Baron.

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It's been a while but I'm trying to get back into things. I'm going to try and complete this story. Please leave a review or a comment, I always value criticism.


	4. Part IV: Snow Sorrow & Radios

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the rights to Battalion Wars.

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**Part IV: Snow Sorrow &amp; Radios  
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Karl awoke from his shallow nightmare filled sleep, woken up by the biting cold that penetrated the tent wall, and his blanket. He arose from his hammock and grabbed a kettle of what was now ice. He wrapped a scarf around his neck and tucked it's ends into his uniform, which he went to bed in. He left his tent to see that the sun hadn't rose yet, and that he wasn't the only one that rose early. The men were huddled around the drum fires, trying to keep warm while also heating their kettles and rations. Karl took to this action as well. The rations weren't terribly filling, and the re-used tea bag was starting to lose its flavour, but it was better than nothing.

"Herr Oberleutnant!" a soldier addressed him, "are we to move out, or are we staying here?"

Karl sipped his tea, "I am weighing our options. On the one hand, if we pack up and leave, we may wander around aimlessly and catch our deaths. On the other hand, if we use this battlestation as a base of operations, then we can send out search parties from this location, but we run the risk of being seen and captured, or killed." he sipped his tea again.

"Are we staying for the time being?"

"Yes, but that may change tomorrow."

Karl watched as his men continued to dig out the battlestation.

"_what a magnificent machine." _he thought. Two hundred years of Xylvanian engineering culminating into the massive blue war machine. As a member of Kaiserkriegmarine, he had seen many of these machines on heavy transports. He had never seen them so close though, only from a distance. He was always on standard troop transports. But now that the metal goliath was mostly... unearthed? unsnowed? Regardless, he was now able to fully view the full magnificence of the great machine. He remembered the days when the globe was under the heel of Xylvania's boot. When the Dune Sea and the rest of the old continent was entirely Xylvainian. They would have had the Anglos as well, if it wasn't for their air force. He sighed. He'd probably never see Xylvania in a better state ever again.

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The Baron awoke from his night's sleep to see that it was still dark out. The submarine's internal heating may have been on, but that didn't stop the cold from biting at him. He put on his coat and decided to go for a stroll, or as close to a stroll as he could get in a long thin tube. He walked the length of the submarine, occasionally looking at the men at work. Many thoughts and memories rushed through his head. Karl had said something earlier in the journey, "how do you know that Kaiser Vlad will still be alive when and if we find him?" This question had been floating around his head since it was said. What if the kaiser was dead, and the only child he ever had, Countess Ingrid, had died when she resurrected the remnants of the Iron Legion. He didn't have any brothers or sisters, and neither did any of his ancestors, at least according to any known records. All they could do is hold a state funeral. They could always switch to a republic, but Xylvania had always had a monarch.

From Lord Ferrok, to Lord Waldelm, to King Sturmwaffe, to King Adlof, to Kaiser Aculard, and finally to Kaiser Vlad. Could they just choose a new Kaiser? If so, then how do they choose him? Or perhaps a republic wasn't a bad idea.

"NO! Bad Emmet, get that filthy idea out of your head!" he said, quite literally knocking on his head to remove the thought.

No, a republic was not suitable. It was not adequate. It was not Xylvanian! They would not stoop to the levels of the repugnant Western Frontier. They would find a kaiser, and that kaiser would be the best kaiser Xylvania would ever have!"

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The battle station was quite roomy without any guns and ammunition taking up the space. It also became rather cosy when they moved a stove into it. The sleeping quarters would be a little cramped, but that was a willing sacrifice for a warm-ish place to sleep. Claustrophobia and the fear of possible cannibalism wouldn't keep Karl from turning this war machine into home away from submarine away from home. The men had done a fine job of excavating the snow that caked the machine's outsides. Karl looked at the machine with pride.

"Good job men. Now we can look at the machine in all its glory."

The grunts nodded and stood beside the Acid Gas Veteran and marvelled at all their hard work.

"we moved a stove and the equipment in there right?" asked the sergeant.

"Most of the equipment... why?"

"Cause the snow would have been a fantastic insulator."

There was silence. A grunt face-palmed himself.

"Well then..." Karl said, patting the sergeant's on his shoulder, "Looks like you guys have work to do."

Karl patrolled the battlestation. The idea of a base to operate from was becoming quite comfortable. With the snow being re-shoveld on the battlestation, the place was becoming camouflaged, which would reduce the chance of being spotted by the Tundrans, and it was also being insulated, which would make the place warm, which would reduce the chance of frostbite. All in all, with most hazards removed, searching from one central point wasn't a bad idea. They would take the day to settle into the battlestation, and perhaps a little longer to see if they can fully camouflage the battlestation.

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The baron sat in his quarters, staring at old photos. He needed the nostalgia to uplift his mood. Photos of him, at the naval academy, taking command as captain of his first ship, earning his position in the Board of Admiralty from Kaiser Vlad. Then he stumbled across photos of him and Karl. Over the years Karl became more than the leader of his marines, he became his best friend. Photos of Karl at his birthday, of Karl and him in the Dune Sea, and of him at Karl on the deck of the TKS Attentäter. And then... photos of his wife and twin sons... He stared longingly at them. His son, Gunter, died in his tour of duty in the dune sea at the hands of the western frontier, his wife, Helga, was killed by the over-zealous warriors of the solar empire during their counter invasion, and his second son, Franz, was reported missing in action during Xylvania's mission of greatness, during the battle of Ice Station X.

He stared at the photos, eyes fixed on his two sons, his two young sons. They had no idea of what they would see. Much like him, blinded with propaganda and glory. To be honest, he was blind too, that is until Gunter died. His poor Gunter. He had so much promise. A strong young man, sharp witted, and according to his many girlfriends, was also quite handsome. And Franz... Franz was a sports star! He captained his favourite soccer team. He was so happy, he was a star. Franz von Blitzkrieg is what they called him. Then he joined the army, caught in the trap that is hot headed revenge over the deaths of Gunter and their Mother. And Helga... A sweet loving woman who cared so much for so many. Franz was grieving for weeks, saying that she wouldn't have died if he wasn't on the other side of the country.

The Baron's head hit the table as he began to sob. He had no sons, and he had no wife. He could do nothing but lament. He hated that he could only lament.

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Karl stood in his quarters, staring down the corridor of the battlestation. He was quite pleased with himself. This battlestation was a symbol of Xylvanian defiance towards the Tundran waists. He checked his watch, it was nearly time for rest, but he decided to patrol his new base once more before dropping into his hammock for the night. He walked past a Grunt fiddling with the Battlestation's radio.

"Corporal, what are you doing?"

"I've been trying to fix the radio sir."

"Is it working?"

"It will be... in... a... second..." the grunt's speech slowed as he was placing in new vacuum tubes.

"Where'd you get the tubes?"

"Found a box of spare parts... There, It should work."

Karl looked at the power switch. "Only one way to find out."

The grunt flipped the switch, the radio turned on.

"What frequency sir?"

"Let's use a frequency no one uses any more."

"Right then." The grunt twisted the knobs. "There we go. This frequency hasn't been used in a hundred years."

"Excellent!" Karl said, getting a bit excited. "I'll take one of our outside and we'll if it works!"

Karl went and grabbed a portable radio pack and went outside the now half buried battlestation. He set it down and cranked the generator, set the frequency, and He turned on the comm and spoke."

"Hello? Corporal? Can you hear me?"

"Yessir, you're coming in clear-ish"

"Clear-ish?"

"Yes sir, a bit of static."

"Maybe there's something wrong with the speaker Eh?"

"Yes may-" the corporal stopped. That wasn't Karl. He turned off the radio immediately. Karl ran into the battlestation. "Sir! Did you hear that!?"

"Yes Corporal... Yes I did..."

They stared at the radio.


End file.
